German Neo-Nazi Group Plotted to Kill Politicians, Turks and Muslims

Suspected accomplice of neo-Nazi cell is lead by police officers to the federal state prosecutor in KarlsruheReuters

A neo-Nazi terrorist group had a list of 88 possible political targets, including two prominent members of the Bundestag and representatives of Turkish and Islamic groups.

The self-styled National Socialist Underground's end came this month after a failed bank robbery led to two of its three members committing suicide and the survivor surrendering to the police.

The number 88 is code for Adolf Hitler in neo-Nazi circles because the letter H is the eight letter of the alphabet, and is code for "Heil Hitler".

Among the senior politicians targeted, Green MP Jerzy Montag who reacted with shock to the news. "This is a dreadful feeling for me," he said in a statement. "The fact that the known members of the terror cell have been deactivated does not mean that this is over. If someone can think this up, then there could also be others.

"I am firmly convinced that the right-wing terrorist underground is not formed by only three or four people and it still exists," he continued. "I take this threat very seriously,"

According to Spiegel Online, investigators discovered the list during inquiries into the activities of the group, which is suspected in a string of terror attacks in Cologne and Düsseldorf from 2000-2004.

German authorities have been criticised for the failure to stop the group, which killed 10 people, robbed 14 banks and planted two nail bombs over 14 years.

"The case discloses a complete failure of domestic intelligence agencies," Montag said. "This failure has many causes, including the unilateral approach of the authorities on Islamist and leftist structures by a conservative domestic policy."

In an interview for the newspaper Suddeutschen Zeitung, Hans-Peter Friedrich said "all data on violent extremists and violence with right-wing political motives needs to be brought together".

Mr Friedrich said a neo-Nazi database would bring state, federal and secret service information on right-wing extremism to one location.

"The entire nation is wondering just how big the Brown Army Faction is, but without the internet and telephone information from the Zwickau cell it is difficult to assess," said Mr Friedrich.

Germans were traumatised to discover an intelligence agent from the Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz, or BfV was present at the gang's killing of a Turk in 2004 but made no report.

It has now emerged that the agent, who was later eliminated from the investigation, had openly right-wing views and was known in the village where he grew up as "Little Adolf".

There were unconfirmed reports the man was present at three or more other neo-Nazi murder scenes.